NCATE Plan Praised, But Some CriticizeIts Cost, Standards

Deans of education schools said last week that the impact of tough
new standards headed for adoption by the dominant national accrediting
organization for teacher-training programs would amount to "business as
usual" at their institutions.

But they also said the proposed standards, if adopted, will have a
dramatic impact on improving the quality of teacher preparation
nationwide.

Others said they object to some of the proposed standards and
criticized the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education
for "trying to move too fast." They called the proposed ncate standards
"unrealistically" high, expensive, and short-sighted in light of the
impending teacher shortage.

"We need a whole lot more time to look at some of the changes that
are being proposed," said Edell M. Hearn, dean of the College of
Education at Tennessee Technological University in Cookeville. "Many of
them may be very good, but several give us very great concern," he
said.

Under the ncate proposal, or "redesign," students who enter programs
accredited by ncate will be required to have a 2.5 college grade-point
average and to take a standardized basic-skills test.

In addition to the admissions standards, the proposal requires
accredited teacher-training programs to assess the competency of
prospective teachers prior to graduation through a variety of
evaluation methods; to follow their students through at least one year
of postgraduate teaching; and to provide "quantitative information" on
the quality of instruction students receive. (See Education Week, April
17, 1985.)

The voting body of ncate, which comprises representatives from 10
professional organizations, such as the National Education Association
and the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, is
scheduled to vote on the new policy in June and is expected to pass the
redesign "in one motion," according to Richard Kunkel, executive
director of ncate.

Following the vote, the redesign will be instituted for a 21-month
trial period that is required under ncate bylaws for a change in
policy.

Opposition

But even with the 21-month trial period, some education deans said
they do not think the ncate redesign is ready for implementation.

According to Arnold M. Gallegos, dean of the college of education at
Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, "there will have to be some
more discussion."

Mr. Gallegos said he is particularly opposed to the use of
standardized testing as an entry requirement.

"I have problems with that because I don't know of any test that is
adequate," he said, adding that officials at the university are "very
concerned about what this will do to minority and disadvantaged
students who want to be teachers."

May Increase Shortages

Several deans also expressed concern about the possible impact of
the proposed standards on the impending teacher shortage.

Requiring prospective teaching students to have a college
grade-point average of at least 2.5 would "knock out" some students who
currently qualify for teacher-training programs, several deans
said.

For example, at Indiana State University, Terre Haute, if the 2.5
gpa admissions requirement had been in effect for students attending
the college of education during 1982-83 and 1983-84, about 11 percent
of the students would not have been there, said J. Stephen Hazlett,
dean of the college.

Although he is concerned about the impact the standards will have on
the teacher shortage, said Michael P. Timpane, dean of Teachers College
at Columbia University, "I don't see any other alternative. This is a
bullet we have to bite. We have to look at the agenda for excellence
and we have to ask, 'Do we really think that we can address that agenda
without a high-quality teaching4force?' The answer is no."

"You're darn right there will be a shortage if we raise standards,"
added Charles W. Case, education dean at the University of Iowa, Iowa
City.

But that should not be a consideration in developing rigorous
standards, Mr. Case maintained. The solution, he said, is to get
politicians to stop "talking out of both sides of their mouths" and pay
competitive teachers' salaries.

Standards Too High

Several deans of state colleges said the ncate proposal is
"worrisome" to them in particular for several reasons.

"Many state institutions may have some problems meeting the proposed
standards," said Gene Campbell, dean of the college of education at the
University of Arkansas in Little Rock.

But Mr. Hearn of Tennessee Technological University disagreed. "I
think the standards can be met," he said, "but I don't think they are
representative of the profession."

Opposition to some of the ncate proposals is widespead at the
state-college level, Mr. Hearn said.

In February, for example, the Teacher Education Council of State
Colleges and Universities, a group of deans representing about 130
colleges of education, drafted a document that asked ncate officials to
postpone adoption of the redesign.

Mr. Hearn, who is a member of the committee that drafted the
resolution, said the council opposes a change in ncate policy under the
redesign that requires colleges of education not only to meet the
standards of ncate, but also the standards of specialty groups, such as
those of the National Science Teachers Association.

Several deans also asserted that implementing the proposed standards
will be costly.

"It will be more expensive for us," said Joseph Lamberti, dean of
the college of education at Butler College in Indianapolis. But he
added that the additional cost can be looked at as a positive factor
for teacher-training programs.

Teacher education has been opperating "on the inexpensive side" for
many years, he said, and the ncate standards may be a way to get
university administrations to put more resources into the programs.

Positive Influence

Other deans agreed with Mr. Lamberti that the standards would have a
positive influence on teacher-training programs.

"ncate, within the limits of its power and authority, is doing
exactly the right thing," said Mr. Case of the University of Iowa. "I
think that if the standards stay intact, it will be a major
advance."

Mr. Timpane of Teachers College said the follow-up requirement in
the ncate proposal is extremely important to improving teacher-training
programs because it will force colleges to institutionalize a program
to measure the success of their students in the classroom.

"Follow-up is mostly done on an ad hoc basis now," he said.

According to Norene Daly, director of teacher education at Madonna
College, a small liberal arts college in Livonia, Mich., the ncate plan
includes reforms that have already been instituted at Madonna.

"We were not so blind that we couldn't see very early on that we
were getting students with weak communication skills and low gpa's,"
she said.

Vol. 04, Issue 31

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